Spinner for toy top

ABSTRACT

A safe spinner for a toy top which ensures that a rack gear formed on a rack belt will not directly contact a user&#39;s body during a pulling operation of the rack belt is provided. A spinner for a toy top includes a rotation imparting mechanism for imparting rotation to a toy top, having a rack gear and a pinion gear. The rack gear is formed on one surface of a belt body of an elongated plate-shape in such a manner that teeth of the rack gear protrude from the surface of the belt body and are arrayed in a longitudinal direction of the belt body. The belt body includes a pair of protection plates which is disposed on the surface thereof so that the plates face each other across the teeth of the rack gear, the pair of protection plates each being formed to have a height from the surface of the belt body equal to or greater than a height of the teeth of the rack gear.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a spinner for a toy top, and more particularly to a spinner for a toy top which will prevent a portion of a rack gear formed on a rack belt from directly contacting a portion of a user's body during a pulling-out operation of the rack belt.

2. Description of the Related Art

Conventionally, a spinner for rotating a toy top and launching the same while spinning it by pulling out a rack belt has been proposed (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2003-103062). The spinner is so constructed that the rack belt is inserted into a spinner main body and the rack belt is then vigorously pulled out so as to operate a drive mechanism disposed inside the spinner main body, to thereby launch the toy top while it is spinning. In this spinner, the rack belt is provided thereon with a rack gear of which teeth are arrayed along a longitudinal direction of the rack belt like a serrated edge of a saw.

In the abovementioned spinner, since the rack belt has such a rack gear of which teeth are arrayed along a longitudinal direction of the rack belt like a serrated edge of a saw, when the rack belt is vigorously pulled out, there is a possibility that the a portion of the rack gear may contact a portion of a user's body, such as a hand or the like, and the user may be injured.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in view of the above problem. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a. safe spinner for a toy top which will prevent a portion of a rack gear formed on a rack belt from directly contacting a portion of a user's body during a pulling operation of the rack belt.

In order to solve the above problem, according to the present invention, there is provided a spinner for a toy top. The spinner includes: a rotation imparting means for imparting rotation to a toy top, including a rack gear and a pinion gear, wherein the rack gear is formed on one surface of a belt body of an elongated plate-shape in such a manner that teeth of the rack gear protrude from the one surface of the belt body and are arrayed in a longitudinal direction of the belt body; and the belt body includes a pair of protection plates which are disposed on the one surface thereof so as to face each other across the teeth of the rack gear, the pair of protection plates each being formed to have a height from the surface of the belt body equal to or greater than a height of the teeth of the rack gear.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the teeth of the rack gear each have at least one lateral end formed integrally with one of the protection plates.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the spinner further includes a spinner main body, wherein the rotation imparting means comprises a rack belt that includes the belt body having the rack gear formed thereon, and a rotation imparting mechanism that is disposed in the spinner main body and that has the pinion gear incorporated therein; the spinner main body has an insertion hole formed therein through which the rack belt is inserted; and the insertion hole of the spinner main body and the rack belt include a guide means for specifying an orientation of the rack belt to be inserted into the insertion hole, whereby the rack gear of the rack belt meshes with the pinion gear of the rotation imparting mechanism when the rack belt is inserted through the insertion hole of the spinner main body.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the guide means includes a guide piece and a guide groove that fittingly engage with each other, the insertion hole of the spinner main body has one of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein and the rack belt has the other of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pinion gear includes a reinforcing plate integrally formed therewith, and a gap of a predetermined size is formed between the other lateral ends of the teeth of the rack gear and the other protection plate so as to permit the reinforcing plate to pass through the gap.

According to the present invention, a pair of protection plates are provided at the lateral sides of the rack gear so that the teeth of the rack gear do not protrude. Such construction can prevent the trouble where a portion of the rack gear contacts a portion of a user's body so as to hurt it at the time of a pulling operation of the rack belt, and therefore, a safe spinner for a toy top which enables a user to concentrate on a toy top match against another toy top without worrying about such a possible trouble can be attained.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, as the teeth of the rack gear are integrally formed with the protection plate, the strength of the rack gear can be enhanced.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the spinning imparting mechanism is disposed in the spinner main body, the rack gear is formed on the rack belt, and the guide means for specifying the orientation of the rack belt is provided, so that the rack belt is inserted through the spinner main body and then pulled out, to thereby impart rotation to the toy top.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, as the guide means is constituted by the guide piece and the guide groove, the rack belt can be properly inserted through the spinner main body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a spinner for a toy top according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a toy top and a playing board;

FIG. 2A is a perspective view showing a rack belt which constitutes the spinner and FIG. 2B is an enlarged view of an encircled part 2B of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3A is a side view of the rack belt and FIGS. 3B and 3C are enlarged cross-sectional views taken along lines 3B-3B and 3C-3C of FIG. 3A, respectively;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a state where the rack belt is to be inserted into a spinner main body of the spinner;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a rotation imparting mechanism of the spinner; and

FIGS. 6A and 6B are sectional views of an essential part of the spinner showing the relationship between the rack belt and internal mechanisms of the spinner main boy.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a spinner A for a toy top according to the present invention. The spinner A includes a rotation imparting means B which is constituted by a rotation imparting mechanism 22 disposed inside a spinner main body 2 and a rack belt 4, so that the rotation imparting means B imparts rotation to a toy top 1 and launches the toy top 1 onto a playing board 3. A user can play a match with the toy top 1 thus launched by the spinner A against another toy top on the playing board 3. The spinner main body 2 has insertion holes 5 formed therein though which the rack belt 4 is inserted. The rack belt 4 is inserted through the insertion holes 5, and the rack belt 4 is then rapidly pulled out to operate the rotation imparting mechanism 22, to thereby impart rotation to the toy top 1.

The rack belt 4 constituting one part of the rotation imparting means B, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, includes a belt body 10 of an elongated plate-shape and a handle 11 that is attached to a rear end of the belt body 10 and can be held at the time the rack belt 4 is pulled out. The handle 11 is connected to the belt body 10 through a ring 12 so as to facilitate a smooth pulling-out operation. The handle 11 may be formed integrally with the belt body 10.

The belt body 10 is provided on one surface thereof with a rack gear 13 of which teeth are formed to protrude and be arrayed in a longitudinal direction of the belt body 10 like a serrated edge of a saw. The belt body 10 is also provided on the surface thereof with a pair of protection plates 14 (14 a, 14 b) which are formed to protrude from the surface thereof and face each other across the teeth of the rack gear 13. One of the protection plate 14 a has a guide piece 15 on an upper end thereof which is formed in a straight ridge shape to extend along the longitudinal direction so as to serve as a first element of a guide means C that enables the rack belt 4 to be inserted into the insertion holes 5 formed in the spinner main body 2 while ensuring the correct orientation of the rack belt 4.

The rack gear 13, as shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C, is formed such that the teeth of the rack gear 13 each have an upper lateral end connected to the one protection plate 14 a located on the upper side of the belt body 10, while a gap S of a predetermined size L is formed between lower lateral ends of the teeth of the rack gear 13 and the other protection plate 14 b located on the lower side of the belt body 10. It should be noted that the lateral direction is a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the rack belt 4. The size L of the gap S, i.e. the distance between the lower lateral ends of the teeth of the rack gear 13 and the upper surface of the protection plate 14 b, is formed to be slightly greater than a thickness of a reinforcing plate 2 described below so as to permit the reinforcing plate 2 to pass through the gap S during insertion or pulling-out of the rack belt 4. The teeth of the rack gear 13 are formed so that tips of the teeth are flush with the free side edges of the protection plates 14 (14 a, 14 b) so as not to protrude beyond the free side edges of the protection plates 14 as shown in FIGS. 3B and 3C. Alternatively, the free side edges of the protection plates 14 may be protruded beyond the tips of the teeth of the rack gear 13. Thus, the pair of protection plates 14 are each formed to have a height from the surface of the belt body 10 equal to or greater than a height of the teeth of the rack gear 13.

The spinner main body 2 is a hollow box and has the insertion holes 5 formed in both side walls thereof through which the rack belt 4 is inserted. In the interior of the spinner main body 2, the rotation imparting mechanism 22 constituting another part of the rotation imparting means B for imparting a rotational force or spinning force to the toy top 1 is arranged as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B.

Each of the insertion holes 5 is provided with a second element of the guide means C for properly inserting the rack belt 4, as shown in FIG. 4. This element of the guide means C is formed to be a recessed portion or guide groove 6, which corresponds to the guide piece 15 of the rack belt 4 that constitutes the first element of the guide means C, so that the rack belt 4 can not be inserted through the insertion holes 5 unless the guide piece 15 is registered with the guide groove 6 and fittingly engaged therewith. The guide means C may be constituted by a guide piece that is formed in the insertion hole 5 so as to project inward and a guide groove that is correspondingly formed in the rack belt 4 so as to extend along the longitudinal direction of the rack belt 4.

The rotation imparting mechanism 22 includes a pinion gear 20 engageable with the rack gear 13 of the rack belt 4 and a ratchet gear 21 integrally formed on the same shaft that the pinion gear 20 is formed on as shown in FIG. 5. A ratchet pawl 26 is constantly urged by a spring 25 so as to be engaged with the ratchet gear 21.

The pinion gear 20 is integrally formed on an upper surface of a reinforcing plate 23 so as to upwardly protrude in order to enhance the strength thereof in a rotational direction.

A shaft portion 30 is formed on the lower side of the ratchet gear 21. The shaft portion 30 includes a proximal or top end part formed in a square shaft shape and a distal or lower end part 30 a formed in a cylindrical shape. The square shaft part of the shaft portion 30 is fitted into a square shaped hole 32 formed in the center of an approximately S-shaped stabilizer 31, so that the stabilizer 31 and the shaft portion 30 integrally rotate.

The lower end part 30 a of the shaft portion 30 is inserted into a shaft hole 41 formed in the center of a rotating body 40, and a screw 76 is threaded into a screw hole 74 formed in the lower end part 30 a via a washer 50 so that the rotating body 40 is adapted to be attached to the shaft portion 30 so as to freely rotate.

The rotating body 40 has an approximately circular engaging recess 42 formed on the upper surface thereof, and engaging grooves 43 are provided in the shape of waves on the inner peripheral surface of the engaging recess 42 so as to engage with the stabilizer 31. The rotating body 40 has two engaging plates 44 of an approximate L-shape which are formed to protrude downward therefrom so as to be engaged with the toy top 1.

The ratchet pawl 26 is so constructed that when the rack belt 4 is inserted in a correct direction, i.e. from the right side as shown in FIG. 6A, the ratchet pawl 26 is pushed away; whereas when the rack belt 4 is to be inserted in a wrong direction, i.e. from the left side in FIG. 6B, the rack belt 4 can not be inserted due to the distal end thereof coming into contact with the ratchet pawl 26.

Now, the manner of use of the spinner A for a toy top as constructed above will be described. First, in order to spin a toy top 1, the toy top 1 is set on the spinner main body 2. At this time, the distal ends of the engaging plates 44 formed on the rotating body 40 of the spinner main body 20 are inserted into engagement holes (not shown) formed in the toy top 1, respectively.

In this state, the guide piece 15 of the rack belt 4 is aligned with the guide groove 6 of one of the insertion holes 5 of the spinner main body 2 and the rack belt 4 is then inserted through the one insertion hole 5 into the spinner main body 2 and through another of the insertion holes 5 in turn. In the state where the rack belt 4 is inserted, the ratchet pawl 26, which is a locking mechanism, is pushed away by the rack belt 4 so that a locking state of the ratchet gear 21 is released as shown in FIG. 6A. Next, when the rack belt 4 is operated to be pulled out with vigor, the pinion gear 20 meshed with the rack gear 13 is vigorously rotated and the rotating body 40 integrated with the pinion gear 20 is rotated, so that the toy top 1 is also vigorously spun in association with the rotation of the rotating body 40.

When the rack belt 4 is pulled out from the spinner main body 2, the rack gear 13 and the pinion gear 20 are disengaged from each other, and at the same time displacement of the ratchet pawl 26 by the rack belt 4 is released so that the ratchet pawl 26 urged by the spring 25 is pivoted to engage and lock the ratchet gear 21 as shown in FIG. 6B, whereby rotation of the rotating body 40 is immediately stopped.

Though the rotation of the rotating body 40 stops, the toy top 1 still rotates due to inertia force, and therefore the engagement between the engaging plates 44 and the toy top 1 is released. Consequently, the toy top 1 is detached from the spinner main body 2 while spinning vigorously and drops on the playing board 3 located below, so that the toy top 1 can be spun on the playing board 3.

During the operation described above, when the rack belt 4 is vigorously pulled out from the spinner main body 2, the rack belt 4 might come into contact with a portion of a user's body. However, since in the rack belt 4, the teeth of the rack gear 13 are covered by the protection plates 14 so as not to protrude, the teeth of the rack gear 13 shaped like a serrated edge of a saw will not directly contact a portion of a user's body, resulting in no possibility of the user being injured. Thus, as there is no need to be careful about the rack gear 13, a user can concentrate on how to play his toy top against the opponent's toy top in a match. 

1. A spinner for a toy top, comprising: a rotation imparting means for imparting rotation to a toy top, including a rack gear and a pinion gear, wherein the rack gear is formed on one surface of a belt body of an elongated plate-shape in such a manner that teeth of the rack gear protrude from the surface of the belt body and are arrayed in a longitudinal direction of the belt body; and the belt body includes a pair of protection plates which are disposed on the one surface thereof so as to face each other across the teeth of the rack gear, the pair of protection plates each being formed to have a height from the surface of the belt body equal to or greater than a height of the teeth of the rack gear.
 2. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 1, wherein the teeth of the rack gear each have at least one lateral end formed integrally with one of the protection plates.
 3. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 1, further comprising a spinner main body, wherein the rotation imparting means comprises a rack belt that includes the belt body having the rack gear formed thereon, and a rotation imparting mechanism that is disposed in the spinner main body and that has the pinion gear incorporated therein; the spinner main body has an insertion hole formed therein through which the rack belt is inserted; and the insertion hole of the spinner main body and the rack belt include a guide means for specifying an orientation of the rack belt to be inserted into the insertion hole, whereby the rack gear of the rack belt meshes with the pinion gear of the rotation imparting mechanism when the rack belt is inserted through the insertion hole of the spinner main body.
 4. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 2, further comprising a spinner main body, wherein the rotation imparting means comprises a rack belt that includes the belt body having the rack gear formed thereon, and a rotation imparting mechanism that is disposed in the spinner main body and that has the pinion gear incorporated therein; the spinner main body has an insertion hole formed therein through which the rack belt is inserted; and the insertion hole of the spinner main body and the rack belt include a guide means for specifying an orientation of the rack belt to be inserted into the insertion hole, whereby the rack gear of the rack belt meshes with the pinion gear of the rotation imparting mechanism when the rack belt is inserted through the insertion hole of the spinner main body.
 5. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 3, wherein the guide means includes a guide piece and a guide groove that fittingly engage with each other, the insertion hole of the spinner main body has one of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein and the rack belt has the other of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein.
 6. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 4, wherein the guide means includes a guide piece and a guide groove that fittingly engage with each other, the insertion hole of the spinner main body has one of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein and the rack belt has the other of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein.
 7. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 2, wherein the pinion gear includes a reinforcing plate integrally formed therewith, and a gap of a predetermined size is formed between the other lateral ends of the teeth of the rack gear and the other protection plate so as to permit the reinforcing plate to pass through the gap.
 8. A spinner for a toy top, comprising: a device for imparting rotation to a toy top; and a belt body of an elongated plate-shape with teeth protruding in a longitudinal direction from a surface of the belt body, and wherein the belt body includes a pair of protection plates which is disposed on the surface thereof so that the plates face each other across the teeth, and wherein each of the protection plates is formed to have a height from the surface of the belt body equal to or greater than a height of the teeth.
 9. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 8, wherein each of the teeth has at least one end formed integrally with one of the protection plates.
 10. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 8, further comprising a spinner main body, wherein the rotation imparting device includes a rack belt that includes the belt body, and a rotation imparting mechanism disposed in a spinner main body; the spinner main body has an insertion hole formed therein through which the rack belt is inserted; and the insertion hole and the rack belt include a guide device for orientating the rack belt relative to the insertion hole.
 11. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 10, wherein the guide device includes a guide piece and a guide groove that fittingly engage with each other, the insertion hole has one of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein and the rack belt has the other of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein.
 12. The spinner for a toy top according to claim 10, wherein the rotation imparting mechanism includes a pinion gear and a reinforcing plate formed therewith, and a gap of a predetermined size is formed between the teeth and one of the protection plates so as to permit the reinforcing plate to pass through the gap.
 13. A gear device, comprising: a handle; and an elongated belt body attached to the handle, wherein a rack gear is formed on a surface of the belt body with teeth that protrude from a surface of the belt body with spaces between first ends of the teeth and are arrayed in a longitudinal direction of the belt body, and wherein the belt body includes a first protection plate disposed to face the first ends of the teeth, and wherein the protection plate is formed to have a height from the surface of the belt body equal to or greater than a height of the teeth of the rack gear.
 14. The device according to claim 13, wherein each of the teeth has as second end opposite the first end and formed integrally with a second protection plate.
 15. The device according to claim 13, further comprising a spinner with a main body, a rotation imparting device including a rack belt that includes the belt body, and a rotation imparting mechanism that is disposed in the spinner main body and that has a pinion gear incorporated therein; the spinner main body has an insertion hole formed therein through which the rack belt is inserted; and the insertion hole and the rack belt include a guide device for orienting the rack belt in the insertion hole, whereby the rack gear meshes with the pinion gear when the rack belt is inserted through the insertion hole.
 16. The device according to claim 15, wherein the guide device includes a guide piece and a guide groove that fittingly engage with each other, the insertion hole of the spinner main body has one of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein and the rack belt has the other of the guide piece and guide groove formed therein.
 17. The device according to claim 15, wherein the pinion gear includes a reinforcing plate, and a gap of a predetermined size is formed between the first ends of the teeth and the first protection plate so as to permit the reinforcing plate to pass through the gap. 